LETRAN suddenly found itself on top of the heap in the National Collegiate Athletic Association junior basketball Final Four round after dealing Mapua an 85-67 blowout win at the close of the eliminations on Monday at the San Andres Sports Complex.

Jovel Baliling and Timothy Cruz led the fight for the gritty Letran squad with 15 points apiece as the Squires notched their eighth win in nine games.

The Red Robins saw their bid to finish as the top-ranked team in the short single-round eliminations crushed in the process.

The Letran Squires will now wait for a while for their Final Four opponent.

Meanwhile, defending champion San Beda blasted Emilio Aguinaldo College, 94-74, to forge a four-way tie at 6-3 with La Salle Green Hills, Mapua and San Sebastian.

The Greenies also booked a place in the Final Four following a 98-74 victory over the Staglets.

It was a sorry loss yes, to the Squires but the Red Robins also made it to the Final Four holding an impressive win-loss record.

It was actually by virtue of superior quotients that LSGH and Mapua advanced, leaving San Beda and San Sebastian slugging it out for the last Final Four spot.

The winner of the Red Cubs-Staglets do-or-die match will take on the Red Robins in another playoff, with the loser settling for the No. 4 spot.

The final playoffs pit the Greenies against either the Red Cubs; the Staglets or the Red Robins, this time for the No. 2 and 3 rankings in the Final Four.

Luis Pablo had 24 points and 14 rebounds and four assists while James Ison chipped in 21 points, five assists, four boards, and two steals as LSGH rebounded from last Friday’s loss to Letran that ended a five-game winning streak.

Chris Hubilla came through with 16 points and 11 rebounds in only 16 minutes of action as San Beda kept its hopes alive of extending its reign.

In the first game, SJ Moore fired 29 points as Arellano University carved out a 91-76 win over Lyceum of the Philippines University to finish the season with a 3-6 card.